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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. content — the amount
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. date — the fruit
  7. bat — the animal
  8. content — happy
  9. mug — a face
  10. drill — a practice
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. mug — a cup
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. mug — to rob
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. club — a group
  18. drill — army training
  19. stem — to come from
  20. club — for dancing
  21. drill — the tool
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the sport
  24. club — for golf

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com